• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.401-407
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• 2022

Background: The present study aimed to digitally evaluate the risk of overwork-related adverse effects (OrAEs) among employees from various occupational categories in Taiwan. Methods: Anonymous data of employees from seven companies/factories providing occupational health services were analyzed. The studied population comprised 5505 employees, and the data analyzed included employment duration, working hours, shift work schedules, and health checkup results. The risk for OrAEs was assessed by an index, Karo index (0-4, the larger the value, the higher the risk for OrAEs) obtained using a risk matrix made up of cardiocerebral and occupational risk factors. Karo index values of 3 and 4 were categorized as at high risk for OrAEs (h-OrAEs). Results: The 5505 employees had an average employment duration of 8.5 years and a mean age of 39.4 years. The prevalence rates for h-OrAEs of the seven companies/factories ranged from 3.9% to 34.2%. There were significant differences in prevalence rates for h-OrAEs between employees of retail stores and high-tech manufacturing factories. Multivariate analysis results indicated that workers of high-tech manufacturing factories had significantly higher risk for h-OrAEs compared with retail store workers. Conclusion: In terms of satisfying health risk management and legal requirements in Taiwan, the newly issued Karo index, which covers a wide range of occupational risk factors, can serve as an assessment and a warning tool for managing the risk of OrAEs in workplaces. To reduce risks for h-OrAEs, active and prudent control of cerebrocardiovascular risks and working hours is recommended.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.24 no.3 s.35
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• pp.279-286
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• 1991

Much of the working population in developing countries are engaged in shift work now and the number of shift workers is not expected to decrease in the future mostly because the need for continuity of production is increasing. Therefore, the possible effects of shift work on health are of particular interest, and in fact, there have been many epidemiological studies on shift work since the first world war. However, no studies on health effects of shift work have been reported in Korea, and the existing studies in western world have arrived at quite different conclusions mainly because the conditions of work other than shift work, such as age and selection of workers, work environment, and labor conditions also influence the health of workers. This study was firstly carried out in Korea to investigate the health risks related to shift work with 2,093 female workers randomly selected from three major manufacturing industries in proportion to total number of female workers in those industries. Differences of work conditions other than shift work in this study were adjusted by multivariate analysis. Ma findings obtained from this study are as follows : 1. There were significant differences between shift and day workers in the distribution of age, type of industry, condition of noise and dust, regularity of mealtime, working position, and working duration. Shift workers tended to be younger, to have shorter working duration, to have more irregular mealtime, to work in standing position, and to work under more noisy and dusty environment than day workers. 2. Univariate analysis showed that shift work increased the Todai Health Index (THI) scores of digestive tract, respiratory tract, and mental instability symptom categories. Shift work also increased days of sickness absence and number of industrial accident per 100 workers per month. 3. Multivariate analysis that adjusted the differences of demographic, occupational and non-occupational health-related working conditions showed that digestive tract symptom and mental instability symptom scores were significantly higher in shift workers than those in day workers. Based on these study results, it is concluded that the shift work has significant effects on some psychophysiological conditions of the workers and the effects are also influenced by several other personal and working conditions.

• Journal of Korean Dental Hygiene Science
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.9-18
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• 2020

This study analyzed 183 for dental hygienists working at dental hospitals and clinics in Daegu to survey organizational socialization of them. The adversity index of the study subjects averaged 58.60±9.16 points out of a total score of 100, with the highest individual initiative of 16.58±3.09 points, and a low of 13.86±3.66 points for continuity of the situation. Organizational socialization averaged 123.40±12.82 points out of 190, with the highest personal characteristics of 30.37±3.71 points, and the lowest occupational identity of 10.34±1.94. The adversity index of the participants was significantly higher in graduate school or higher (F=3.112, p=0.047), the lower the intensity of their work (F=2.860, p=0.060), and the more often the degree of turnover (F=5.196, p<0.006). In organizational socialization, age (F=9.290, p<0.001), educational background (F=8.655, p<0.001), and higher position (F=5.425, p=0.005) were significantly higher when working in hospitals (F=4.534, p=0.012). The higher the position (F=5.425, p=0.005), the higher the work experience (F=5.320, p=0.002), the lower the turnover (F=22.935, p<0.001), and the highrer the intensity of the work(F=7.02, p<0.001). The study subjects' organizational socialization showed a significant correlation with the adverse event index (r=0.395, p<0.000). The regression analysis using organizational socialization as a dependent variable showed that the degree of turnover (β=0.300, p<0.001) had a significant effect on organizational socialization. The total explanatory power of this variable was 41.6%, with significant effects on individual initiative (β=0.255, p<0.000) and personal control (β=0.180, p<0.009) among the adverse events index. The above findings confirmed that a high adverse event index of dental hygienists has the effect of increasing organizational socialization. Dental hygienists' adversity index is average, meaning they live a smooth life in smooth conditions, however, when major adversity arises, organizational socialization is highly necessary. In addition, to strengthen the organizational socialization of new dental hygienists, as well as experienced dental hygienists, a customized program should be administered to raise the adverse index of dental hygienists, and provide a human management tool through regular confirmation of the program.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.329-339
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• 2013

Purpose: This study was conducted to provide basic data on the nursing Happiness Index and identify factors influencing nurses by describing their perception of lifestyle, health behavior, nursing professionalism, Happiness Index, and turnover intention. Methods: On July 2012, 700 nurses from 10 general hospitals were surveyed, but 23 were omitted due to missing or incomplete data. The focus of this study was the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Happiness Index, consisting of 11 OECD identified topics concerning living conditions and quality of life. Data were analyzed using $x^2$-tests, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients and multiple regression with SPSS/WINdow 14.0. Results: Mean score for nurses' Happiness Index was 3.03 on a scale of 5. There were significant differences on the Happiness Index for the following: age, marriage, children, education, position, work experience, wages, number of beds, medical institution, health behavior, weight, and meal patterns. There was a positive correlation between the happiness index and nursing professionalism but a negative correlation between the happiness index and turnover intention. Conclusion: Results indicate that factors influencing happiness are autonomy, sense of calling and turnover intention suggesting the need to improve nursing professionalism for a life of happiness among hospital nurses.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.362-372
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• 2016

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate whether job satisfaction in clinical nurses was dependent on work intensity and whether physical discomfort mediated the relationships between these variables. Methods: Structural equation modeling was used with a sample of 253 clinical nurses from four general hospitals. In the model, absolute work intensity, relative work intensity, and flexibility were considered as exogenous variables and physical discomfort as a mediating variable. Data were collected using self-report measures such as the Labor Intensity Questionnaire, the Rating of Perceived Exertion, and the Index of Job Satisfaction. Results: The results of the structural equation modeling found that the higher scores on absolute and relative work intensity were positively associated with physical discomfort but only relative work intensity was significantly related to job satisfaction. Physical discomfort mediated the relationships between absolute work intensity and job satisfaction and between relative work intensity and job satisfaction. Among three kinds of work intensity, only relative work intensity had direct and indirect effects on job satisfaction. Conclusion: The findings suggest that increase in relative work intensity might play an important role in decreasing job satisfaction in clinical nurses and a reasonable reward system considering relative work intensity could be necessary.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.371-377
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• 2017

Background: Social status might be a determinant of occupational health inequalities. This study analyzed the effects of social status on both work environments and health outcomes. Methods: The study sample consisted of 27,598 wage employees aged 15 years and older from among the Korean Working Condition Survey participants in 2011. Work environments included atypical work, physical risks, ergonomic risks, work demands, work autonomy, social supports, and job rewards. Health outcomes comprised general health, health and safety at risk because of work, the World Health Organization-5 Well-being Index, work-related musculoskeletal disease, and work-related injury. Multivariable logistic-regression models were used to identify the associations between social status and work environments and health outcomes. Results: Employees in the demographically vulnerable group had lower occupational status compared with their counterparts. Low social status was largely related to adverse work environments. Especially, precarious employment and manual labor occupation were associated with both adverse work environments and poor health outcomes. Conclusion: Precarious and manual workers should take precedence in occupational health equity policies and interventions. Their cumulative vulnerability, which is connected to demographics, occupational status, adverse work environments, or poor health outcomes, can be improved through a multilevel approach such as labor market, organizations, and individual goals.

• Communications of the Korean Mathematical Society
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2010

The work in this paper was motivated by [3], where Eschenbach and Li listed four 4 by 4 sign patterns, conjectured to be nilpotent sign patterns of nilpotence index at least 3. These sign patterns with no zero entries, called full sign patterns, are shown to be potentially nilpotent of nilpotence index 3. We also generalize these sign patterns of order 4 so that we provide classes of n by n sign patterns of nilpotence indices at least 3, if they are potentially nilpotent. Furthermore it is shown that if a full sign pattern A of order n has nilpotence index k with $2{\leq}k{\leq}n-1$, then sign pattern A has nilpotent realizations of nilpotence indices k, k + 1, $\ldots$, n. Hence, the four 4 by 4 sign patterns in [3, page 91] also allow nilpotent realizations of nilpotence index 4.

• International Journal of Control, Automation, and Systems
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.100-108
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• 2005

This work presents a novel control index to regulate the pump speed of an axial flow blood pump for the left ventricular assist device (LVAD). The control index is based on the characterization of pump operating conditions such as normal or suction status. The pump operating characteristics reveal that a certain pulsatility relationship between the pump pressure difference and the pump flow is a unique index to identify the pump operating status under the diverse pump operating environments.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.104-111
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• 2022

Background: The IMPPAC cohort (Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychosocial aspects and work ability among Brazilian workers) seeks to understand the impact of the pandemic on Brazilian workers. This article describes the occupational profile, psychosocial aspects, and work ability determined during the baseline and follow-up measurements of the cohort. Methods: Workers were invited to participate through media advertisements, social networks, and emails. From June to September 2020, 1211 workers were included in the cohort. Follow-up measurements finished on October 2021 with 633 workers. Data were collected through standardized questionnaires using Google Forms. Psychosocial aspects were assessed using the COPSOQ II-Br. Work ability was assessed using the Work Ability Index (WAI). Results: At baseline and follow-up, high proportion of workers were in the risk zone with regard to work pace, emotional work demands, influence on work, work-family conflict, burnout, and stress. Approximately 75% of the workers reported good to excellent work ability at baseline and follow-up. Conclusion: The occupational profile, psychosocial aspects, and work ability of Brazilian workers from the IMPPAC cohort were described. Psychosocial aspects and WAI were similar at baseline and follow-up.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.19 no.3 s.67
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• pp.101-107
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• 2004

Recently, construction work's tendency has become a high-rise building, a complexity and a large size. According to the KOSHA data, construction work accidents have not been decreased. Looking at from the side of accident accidents of construction industry are occupied over 1/3 among all industry accidents. Therefore, this study will analyze the accident of the building construction work from the data of KOSHA which were collected during 11 years$(1992\~2002)$ data relating to serious accidents of the building construction work suggest the counterplan according to the each work type in building construction work.